Human milk and bovine milk differ in their qualitative and quantitative nutrient makeup. Although some amount of work has been done to study the effects of processing and storage on nutrient content of bovine milk, such effects on the constituents of human milk and colostrum cannot be predicted on the basis of experience with bovine milk. Accordingly, this project will evaluate the effects of processing and storage on nutrients in human milk. The processing will consist of heating, freezing, freeze-drying or spray-drying. The effects of these processes and subsequent storage on caseins, whey proteins, enzymes, vitamin-binding proteins, immunoglobulins, water-soluble vitamins and milk lipids will be determined, using electrophoresis, isoelectric focusing, radioimmunoassay and immunodiffusion techniques. The physicochemical tests such as curd tension, pH upon reconstitution, dispersibility, viscosity, color and in vitro digestibility will also be determined. Microbiological quality tests will be performed to assess the effects of processing and storage on the microflora of human milk and colostrum.